speed, and all this chaos did not stop republican lawmakers in both the house and the senate from passing that right to work bill, the set of them. the governor has made it clear that he is ready to make it law. if signed into law, in fact, that would cause quite a problem pour those folks. michigan would join 23 other states. michigan is considered the birthplace of organized labor. it's now on the verge of becoming the 24th right to work state. thanks, everyone. suzanne malveaux is up next with "newsroom international." have a great day. >> welcome to "newsroom international." i'm suzanne malveaux. here's what's going on right now. a shocker on the jobs front. 146,000 new jobs added. that is almost twice as many jobs created in november than expected. the unemployment rate falls even

further below 8%. we now have the lowest unemployment rate in four years at 7.7%. we're following the markets to see if it has an impact as well. cnn has now learned that pentagon officials are reworking their plans for possible military action against syria. that is after now confirmed reports emerging from syria that forces loyal to president bashir al assad are preparing bombs with chemical weapons. syrian soldiers fighting with rebels for control over the outskirts of damascus. now, witnesses tell cnn that 30 people were killed today in street battles across syria. we're also learning about a car bombing in the city of homs and a horrible, horrible discovery. dozens of bodies believed to be victims of a massacre. the same time rebel fighters, they are taking on syrian forces literally house to house in the country's largest city. that is aleppo, and that is where we find our arwa damon

today. >> reporter: for two months the streets here have been a war zone. part of a bigger battle for control of aleppo, syria's largest city. this father of four is one of the rebel fighters here. this is our country, our homes that are being destroyed, he tells us. he used to sell thread. now he runs logistics for his unit. so what he is explaining to us is that this was street to street fighting, and it took his unit quite some time to advance and right now they have the tractor here because they're trying to clear out this road so that ambulances and vehicles can begin to move through. >> blankets hang across one alleyway to block government snipers' line of sight. the shooting is coming from

there, the sniper, one of the fighters points out. they take us further forward. crawling through holes punched between buildings. they're just telling us that it's because of the snipers that they have to move through the various buildings like this. it's an urban version of first world war trenches. they etched forward by just one block. going any further is back breaking work. a rebel dashes down the street carrying a makeshift rocket launcher. it's a plastic tube. he later displays the rocket. this is a homemade rocket that was manufactured by the fighters

themselves in this very battlefield. but they can't find the sand bags to stabilize the launcher. the weapons the fighters carry are spoils of war, captured from government forces, but they also make a promise. there is a message we have, one of the older fighters vows. when this is over, the guns will be handed over. i am just fighting to see my house down the road, he says. it's hard to fully absorb the scale of the devastation here, how entire buildings seem to have folded down upon themselves, and then one continues to see traces of the lives of the civilians that called these buildings home, like the clothing that's just hanging right there or children's books, like this one, the pages of it that we picked up from the rubble. but this conflict can be surreal, just a couple of blocks away, the local barbershop is

open, as are a handful of other stores. women crowd around us, eager to talk, but not be filmed. both sides have hurt us, wronged us, one says. basic supplies are available here, although prices have skyrocketed. bread, bread, we want it so badly it's like a drug, this woman tells us. if someone has breakfast, they can't afford dinner. please, have mercy, they beg. on the street we meet four boys. they ask if we think it's safe enough for them to go back home. they talk of tanks firing and seeing other children lose limbs. they say what they witnessed has made them all decide to be doctors to save the victims of war. >> arwa damon on the ground in northern syria, and she's joining us live via skype, and,

arwa, it is just amazing to see the slees of life, what is taking place there on the ground. it barely seems like people are able to cope in any kind of normal fashion. when you go from village to village or family to family, do you get a sense at all that there's an end game here, that they see an end and a way that they can pick up their lives and move on, or this is just the way they're going to exist for quite some time? >> it's so difficult to put into words, suzanne, exactly what it is that these families have been going through. many of them are so frustrated, they're so angry. just earlier today, for example, we were in aleppo once again. we met a family. it was actually two families because one brother had to move into another brother's home because his had been destroyed in a government air strike. 17 children were living there. they hadn't had anything to eat, any proper food to eat in 24 hours. we were stopping at a number of bread lines, and the bread lines here have really grown

phenomenally as has the growing cost of the bread itself. people were so angry. the mom actually gathered around us, and a number of people within them were demanding that we leave because they reached a point where they feel as if the outside world knows exactly what's happening in syria. they've been seeing it for months on end, and at this point in time people were asking us not to leave because they genuinely felt as if the world knew what was happening, people were continuously filming them, and the world was quite simply mocking their misery. >> do you have any idea here whether or not they are aware of the reports that have come out, that the assad forces, the government, has possibly been preparing chemical weapons? >> some people are aware, yes. especially when it comes to speaking with the rebels and their leadership. some of the civilians are aware of that as well, but given the fact that there hasn't been a lot of power in large parts of aleppo in and of itself, most

civilians aren't aware of it. those that are aware, though, and those rebel that is are aware, are very quick to point out that at this point they have absolutely no defense whatsoever against that type of weaponry. ever since this conflict began, the civilian population has been incapable of protecting itself against bullets and bombs. there most certainly is no defense whatsoever should the regime decide to deploy chemical weapons. >> are they afraid of that possibility? do they talk about that, the possibility of their own government turning on them like that and unleashing these type of weapons? >> they most certainly do, suzanne. especially obviously the conversation amongst those that are aware of it. they do feel that this is a regime that has absolutely no mercy whatsoever, and the greater the tranglehold on regime forces grows, the greater the likelihood that the assad government could, in fact, choose to take this kind of drastic measure against its own population. people have no doubt in their minds about the lengths to which

this government -- the assad government will go to stay in power. one rebel commander, we were speaking to yesterday, was saying if you look at how gradually the government has increase the its use of force, starting with bullets, then moving on to artillery mortar fire and moving on to aircraft, they feel as if the next step would, yes, be the use of chemical weapons. >> this might be a very difficult question to answer, arwa, but you're on the ground there, and you see these small pockets and these sleess of life here. do you have any sense of a big picture of who is actually winning in this civil war? are the rebels doing any better than they were, weeks or months ago? >> they most definitely are gaining ground and significant ground. if we compare the situation now to, say, just a few months ago there are areas of aleppo that one could not have even fathomed going into. when it comes to the city of aleppo itself, they are able to hold certain frontlines, and

that most certainly is an incredible development given that they have had no help from the outside world. we see them running around the battlefield with homemade rockets, grenades, and anything they can get their hands on. they are driven by sheer determination, so, yes, they are most certainly gaining ground. they do feel as if they have at least in this part of the country the government effectively besieged, whether it's on certain bases, certain installations they have, or in certain neighborhoods. it's very difficult to really determine just how long this is going to take and just who is going to end up coming out the victor. that is if anyone does, in fact, end up winning this, given the sheer devastation that's taken place in this country. >> arwa damon, excellent reporting, as always. we appreciate the fact that you are, indeed, risking your life at certain times just to bring these stories to us. thank you, once again. civil war taking place. the ground of syria and still very uncertain how this is all going to turn out in the end. dozens of protesters attack

the egyptian president mohammed morsi's home throwing rocks and glass and bottles. according to reports, they've pushed down these barriers to actually protect his home. plus, it is never been done before. this is a journey across the antarctic on foot and in the winter, but this great adventurer finally being attempted. we're going to hear from sir randolph fines about how he could be the first man to ever cross the south pole. >> it's like a drug. it's like an addiction. once you are bitten by polar records, you keep going for it. in advanced teacher education. let's build a strong foundation. let's invest in our teachers so they can inspire our students. let's solve this. when we got married.

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with odor free aspercreme. powerful medicine relieves pain fast, with no odor. so all you notice is relief. aspercreme. people there in cairo are furious at the president for giving himself near absolute power, and they don't like the country's propoll posed constitution either. it was just the latest unrest in a week of violent protests. want to bring in reza sayah, who is live in cairo overlooking tahrir square. we have two issues on the table here. the constitution, which they're not happy with. they believe the islamists basically took it over, and put their stamp on it, and nobody else is represented. then you've got this power grab by the president. what do the protests think they

can do by assembling there? we know people have died this n those protests. what do they want? >> reporter: they have the power to protest, and that's what we're seeing again today. last night the president addressed the nation. a lot of people to see what he would say. could he end this conflict? would he make some consegments? would he back down from his position? here's what he did. he called for calm and peace. he called for all political factions and their leaders to meet tomorrow at the presidential palace for a national dialogue, and he also issued a warning to protesters not to resort to violence, but when it comes to those two core positions, he didn't back down. he said the nationwide referendum would still take place, and he didn't rescind those controversial redee krees he made last month. it gave him additional powers. he said that's only going to

happen after the referendum on december 15th. of course, those were the demands of the opposition. they didn't get it. that's why they're back here protesting, suzanne, and for good measure the leaders of the opposition have rejected the president's call for national dialogue. they're saying they're not going to go to palace tomorrow to talk to him. >> so, reza, what we're seeing are pictures here of people beating drums, jumping up and down, but they also understand that they have gotten osd the palace wall, the presidential palace wall. can they knock down this wall? what is the situation? can they get close to the president? >> there's two separate demonstrations happening. one here, in tahrir square and a bigger one outside the presidential palace. yesterday the republican guard came and set up a barricade a block away from the palace. for the most part demonstrators had stayed behind that barricade. now we're getting some reports

that some demonstrators have penetrated that barricade, but no indication that they've attacked the palace. big numbers out there. president obama called president morsi yesterday. what did you learn about that one call? waington is obviously concerned. the president calling mr. morsi expressing his concern about the violence and especially the people who have died in the protests, but beyond that it doesn't look like washington is getting any more involved, but they're going to watch this situation. obviously, egypt is an important country. washington. apparently when it comes to their stated priority of keeping israel safe. egypt is going to play a key role on that, and you can be sure that washington willprssid government based on how they handle this political crisis. it was meant as a prank.

two dj's call the hospital where catherine, the duchess of cambridge, is -- the hospital is now speaking out. we have a live report from london. americans are always ready to work hard for a better future. since ameriprise financial was founded back in 1894, they've been committed to putting clients first. helping generations through tough times. good times. never taking a bailout. there when you need them. helping millions of americans over the centuries. the strength of a global financial leader. the heart of a one-to-one relationship. together for your future.

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started az prank pulledably

a couple radio dj's in australia. they called the hospital where the duchess of cambridge was being treated for morning sickness. the dj's managed trick a nurse into giving them details on her condition and put the whole thing on the air, so now the joke has taken a tragic turn. the nurse who originally took the call has apparently killed herself. the head of the hospital spoke just a short time ago. >> we can confirm that jacinta was recently the victim of a hoax call to the hospital. the hospital had been supporting her through this very difficult time. jacintha was a first class nurse who cared diligently for hundreds of patients during her time with us. >> joined by matthew chance in london. matthew, really just a tragic story all around. this woman, she was one of two people who spoke to these dj's, but what was her role in all of that? >> reporter: well, it was relatively minor, of course, the

whole incident was meant as a light-hearted gag. however, ill judge that was in retrospect, but it seems that this individual who is suspected to have committed suicide had the nurse who first answered the prank call from the australian radio station. she was -- i've got the actual script right here. she was asked by one of the impersonators, somebody impersonating the queen, could i please speak to kate, my granddaughter, thinking she was speaking to the queen. she said, oh, yes, just hold on and transferred her to the ward. so it seems that this was the nurse that made that transfer, and the nurse that has now been found dead a short distance from the front doors of the private hospital. >> matthew, do we have any idea whether or not her apparent suicide is linked to this prank?

>> reporter: well, it's not been linked directly by the police or the hospital. though, clearly, you know, they are linked. in fact, the hospital in its statement says that this nurse was the subject of a hoax call. in its statement confirming her death. they, of course, are linking it. i started to say there's been some reaction to this from the royal family, a statement from st. james' palace saying the duke and duchess of cambridge were deeply saddened to learn about the death of jacintha. it says their royal line yes, sirs were looked after so wonderfully well at the king edward the xiith hospital here in central london, and their thoughts and prardz are with leagues, friends, and family at this very sad time. there had been some suggestion that the royal family made an official complaint to the hospital about the fact that this call was put through to the ward, but the royal sources tell cnn that that was not the case, and, in fact, the royal family

have, in their words, been very support tiff of the nurses involved in this at all times. >> all right. matthew chance, thank you. american software giant john mcafee now running from the law. belize police want to question him about a murder there, right? well, he was hoping for asylum in guatemala, but now he has been denied, so he is in custody, but there's more drama. why he was taken away in a stretcher. cnn is in guatemala with this bizarre twist. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] it started long ago. the joy of giving something everything you've got. it takes passion. and it's not letting up anytime soon.

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says, no, he can't stay. martin savidge is in guatemala city, and, martin, first of all, why the back and forth here? why is the government saying no to his first request? >> reporter: well, i think simply because the government has realized that there's no real political basis for john mcafee to claim that he needs asylum. in other words, police have only said in belize that they want to question him regarding the death of his neighbor, so that's not a political issue. it's a legal issue. seeking asylum just simply is not the correct path to take, and the government here said no. then it was just shortly after that turn-down that we had the next drama. that was, of course, the health emergency. it caused a great deal of commotion. there was the excitement outside of the detention center where he is. there's john mcafee being laid out on a stretcher, and he is suffering from something. he has taken on to a police hospital, and he is evaluated there for several hours.

later when i talked to the police there, they said it was simply a matter of what appeared to be stress. his attorney says it was a mild heart attack. either way he was let go from that hospital, and he is now sitting, once again, in the detainment center. >> so martin, what happens next? >> i'm sorry to smile because this is actually serious, but having been on this story now for a month, you never know what is really going to happen next? we just had a conversation moments ago before coming to air with the attorney, a very powerful attorney here in guatemala city, that represents john mcafee, and he says that everything that can be done is being done to come up with some sort of stay. perhaps appealing all the way to the supreme court of guatemala to keep mcafee in the country. right now he says at least for the moment they don't see him leaving. now, we have not heard back from the authorities here that are actually detaining, so we can't see whether the lawyer is right on that, but you clearly have to follow this one day by day.

>> you certainly do. you can't make this stuff up. do we have any idea if he actually went back to belize, whether or not he would face charges in this murder of his neighbor? >> i did have a conversation with the authorities there on that particular issue, and they said the way it would work is that mcafee in the -- would be flown back to belize city, and the police would be waiting to greet that airplane, immigration police, and they would not take him into custody, but they would take him downtown for questioning, which is what they said they've always wanted to do. depending on how he answered those questions would determine whether he was charged or whether he would simply be let go. we don't know, but that's supposedly the one thing i've learned about this one, suzanne, is nothing is ever as simple as it seems with john mcafee. >> not at all. okay. martin, thank you. good following that story. venezuelan president hugo chavez back in car abbing yas. he hasn't been seen publicly for three weeks, but he was all smiles when he returned to venezuela today.

venezuelan officials say he received hyperbarrick oxygen treatment in cuba. it is meant to heal bone damage from radiation therapy. chavez received radiation and surgery for a cancerous tumor last year. and now where villages once stood, there are now piles of debris. tens of thousands of people now homeless after a typhoon hits the philippines. challenges people are facing as they are trying to pick up the pieces of their lives. yep. the longer you stay with us, the more you save. and when you switch from another company to us, we even reward you for the time you spent there. genius. yeah, genius. you guys must have your own loyalty program, right? well, we have something. show her, tom. huh? you should see november! oh, yeah? giving you more. now that's progressive. call or click today.

a powerful earthquake rocked the country today in japan. it was centered in the pacific ocean off the northeast coast, but the 7.3 magnitude quake shook buildings many tokyo. also set off a small tooum. so far there are no reports of major damage, but ten people suffered minor injuries. the philippines, the death toll from tie phone bopka now stands

at -- nearly as many people are still missing. add to that a quarter million peop who have lost their homes to strong winds, flash floods, and mudslides. our liz nislas visited the village where the search for survivors continues. some of the video might be a bit disturbing. >> reporter: the aftermath of a super typhoon. raging winds barrelled through here leaving destruction and chaos. the grim tally of death continues to rise. survivors must identify bodies covered in mud after flash floods. many roads are impassable, hampering the search and any rescue. outside of the city the flooding has swamped this neighborhood. 45 families made their way through waist-high water to get to the highway and wait for help. the water was slowly rising to the roof, this man says.

this couple have cobbled together shelter from bits of wood and plastic. they have six children to feet. the oldest 13. the youngest just 6. a tree fell on their flooded house, they say. in the devastated province m valley bags of rice and basic foods are readied for distribution. officials call this immediate assistance. there's need for much more. >> there are a lot of right now missing persons. what we lack -- what the government lacks here right now is medical and basically maybe people would be able to help out the people who have been affected. >> this area is usually spared the annual typhoon when it hit the country, so even with warnings, many people here didn't belief that such a powerful and destructive force would land here. this is what's left of the home and kitchen. she and her four children were

terrified. they had never experienced a few afternoon before. >> the wind destroyed my house. we ran away. the roof top was flying, she says. her 17-year-old daughter jane has salvaged her school year book and separates the water-logged pages. tens of thousands fill evacuation centers in this area. many of the centers are community gyms like this one, where there was no organized aid. >> my house is already like that. we don't have house anymore. >> reporter: the need here is enormous. for help and hope. liz dislas, philippines. 2,000 miles in negative 130 degree weather. that is real. it is considered the coldest expedition ever attempted, so why is sir randolph fines attempting to cross the antarctic by foot. we'll hear from him next. aids affects us all.

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>> fines is hoping to become the first man to cross the antarctic in the winter when temperatures drop to minus 130 degrees. becky anderson is live in london. wow, becky. this is unbelievable. i've never heard of anything like this. how is this guy supposed to survive? how does he do this? >> well, i think that's what they're going to learn, whether they can survive. for six months in the dark, suzanne. let's remember that it's winter between march and september in antarctica, so it will be dark for most of the time, and as you say, the temperatures will be below 90 degrees centigrade, or 130 degrees fahrenheit. that is something else. as with all these expeditions worth their salt, they'll be carrying out some scientific

experiments. they'll also be raising some $15 million for seeing is believing, which is a global charity to prevent blindness. there's lots of good reasons why they're doing this, but if you are arguably the greatest living british explorer, there is more to it than that. there are two words that i think come to mind when you talk to explorers. that's ego, and this great sense of competition. have a listen to what he said about that. >> people that wanted these records as much as we do are mainly the norwegians and we realize this. they realize that. for the last 40 years it's been, you know, back and forth, and they call it polar hula, meaning it's like a drug. it's like an addiction. once you're bitten by polar records, you keep going for it. >> now, suzanne, the british and

the norwegians have been locked in this sort of polar war for the last 40 years, and, quite frankly, the norwegians keep beating the brits. this is really important. remember, it's 68 years old. with respect, i did ask him why he still goes on, but he said it is all about the ego and the competition. it is a phenomenal challenge. it is the last, as you said, great polar challenge. remarkable. hope he does it. >> let's talk about what he has to do. we just saw briefly pictures here. obviously, you have to have some good cold weather gear, and we saw him crawling across the snow and the plains there. what kind of conditions is he facing? >> just about the worst that you could possibly imagine. the equipment they are taking with them hasn't been tested at these extreme temperatures. they will be effectively skiing across these 2,000 miles or 3,200 kilometers.

they've got caterpillar gear with them. the sort of thing you would see on the side of the road as they were building. it's these great yellow machines that will help them drag their equipment, but ultimately, at the end of the day, it's reynold fiemnes and five others who have to survive together. he told me that one of the great expeditions that he had done was 52,000 miles around the world. they were. >> it is about dealing with each other and keeping each other going. sde expect to come back, ought many will say he is absolutely mad to do it. he said the one thing he misses is a great warm bath, and he says there's a smell towards the end of these trips because all of you are smelling, you sort of

smell together. i mean, the sort of conditions are so extreme. neither you or i could really get our heads around it. yesterday it was zero degrees in london. that is 90 times warmer than it will be for him, and i was absolutely freezing doing that interview with him. it's -- >> i guess we're wimps compared to him. we don't have that bug, that addiction that he caught. best of luck to him, and he is raising money for charity, and hopefully he is successful. we're going to check back in with you to see how he is doing with all this. thanks again. >> well, she is trying to save the lives and change lives of girls in afghanistan. we're going to talk to one of our cnn hero honores. >> i think it's like a fire that will grow every year my hope becomes more. i can see the future. aches, fevers. and i relieve nasal congestion. overachiever. [ female announcer ] tylenol® cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion. nyquil® cold and flu doesn't.

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zimplt in afghanistan girls are

often treated more like property than people. after 40 years in the u.s. this woman headed halfway around the world to try to help afghan girls help themselves. for her work she was honored as cnn's -- one of cnn's heroes, and here is her story. >> most of the goods have no worth. they are used as property of the family. the picture is very grim. my name is razia jan, and i'm the founder of a girls school in afghanistan. when we opened the school in 2008, 90% of them could not write their name. today 100% of them are educated. they can read. they can write. i lived in the u.s. for over 38 years. i was really affected by 9/11. i really wanted to prove that

muslims are not terrorists. i came back here in 2002. >> everybody. >> girls have been the most repressed, and i thought i have to do something. it was a struggle in the beginning. i would sit with these men, and i would tell them don't marry them when they're 14 years old. they want to learn. >> how do you write your father's name? >> e-i-s -- >> after five years now, the men, they are proud of their girls. one day they can write their name. still, we have to take these precautions. some people are so much against girls getting indicated. we provide free education to over 350 girls. i think it's like a fire that will grow every year. my hope becomes more, i think, i can see the future.

>> i'm happy to be joined now by rezia jan, and really an incredible project. congratulations for all of the work that you have done. really quite incredible. when i went into afghanistan last year, one of the things i saw was the women on the street. it's not just the head scarves, but it's the mesh that literally a screen over their eyes, and they're invisible. they're essentially invisible. what do these girls need? how do you change a culture that treats girls and women as invisible? >> i think that my best -- i think my best hope and what i am really -- auz know, that the culture is so strict for girls. blue or white or green or red,

this mesh that is -- all they can see is with the two eyes, and they can't breathe, and they have to walk miles in it, and i see that, and unfortunately, i have some of my students that are in that position, but my great hope is that -- what i encourage them that, yes, you are wearing this cover. you are like an object. you are walking. nobody can recognize you, but then when you enter my school, you have eight hours of great pleasure, great learning that otherwise you will not have. please don't stop come to school because you are forced to wear this mesh on your face.

>> it seems like you really have to work with the men, with the fathers of these young girls before they learn -- they have to get the buy-in from the family. how do you convince them that this is good for their daughters? >> i think i'm lucky. i think, again, first of all, to be old, i think that's one privilege, and then second, is that i am from that culture, and when they see me without a mesh, when they see me that i can say no to them, but still i respect them, and seeing me, you know, doing all these things, i think i have that kind of upper hand for them or at least they can listen to me. i think that makes the difference. >> you are very convincing. tell us a little about your school and the changes that have come about since you've been named a cnn hero. >> i think it's just such an

amazing privilege award, recognition. you know, there are thousands of people in the world that are doing good, great things, and then to be chosen to be one of ten, it's just amazing. i think it's a god's blessing. for me to be recognized and go forward because in afghanistan it's not just giving education to the kids or making it a place for them, but it's just they're so, you know -- these women, these girls, have no place in society, and to bring that out and to make them -- give them that sense of respect, i think, under all these circumstances is so great. >> well, congratulations, again, and on the good work that you do. we certainly wish the very best for those young girls that you have taken under your wing. thank you. the unemployment rate

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december 7th, 1941 japanese bombers launched a surprise attack on the u.s. naval base at pearl harbor, hawaii. that was 71 years ago today. moments ago at almost the exact minute it happened hawaiian time military veterans active duty service members and americans of all ages held a moment of silence at pearl harbor memorial to remember 12,400 men and women that lost their lives that day. help for the disabled. a cleaner environment. safer world. you want all that, right? well, the european space agency says it's got the answer, and it's in space. cnn's aiyish reports from

london. >> like an audio gps for the blind and visually impaired, the faster it ticks, you are on the right track. >> if you turn to the right side,ist the wrong way. if you go to the left side, it's the wrong way. so you find in the middle where it's very loud. there you have to go. >> reporter: satellites are used by different industries, like aviation. used in bad weather for planes and helicopters. >> the new aviation paradigm is going to be satellite navigation to be sure that aircrafts are going to be better using the airspace and the use of landing, and that there's more safe landings available at airports that don't have a lot of traffic. >> this is the european space expo. a traveling exhibition dome showing off space applications and the flagship projects of the european space program. for antonio, vice president of the european commission, space

is at the center of the e.u. strategy. >> it's crucial for our economy. it's part of the -- we want to do it for growth and jobs. to work in transport sector -- and it's very, very important for europe, also for our investment. >> the e.u. hopes that the space sector will account for 20% of its gdp by the year 2020. the u.k. space agency has been $2 billion for the european space agency programs. the space agency already contributes 9.1 billion or $14 billion to the u.k. economy. for europe investing in space is investing in the future. medical marijuana is already

legal in several states in the united states. now, voters in washington state and colorado have ok'd the recreational use richard branson says yes. >> simply proposed with the harder drugs is do what portugal has done and that is, you know, let the state set up clinics throughout america that if you have a drug problem, you go to that clinic. give them the methodone until they're ready to come off, and when they're ready, you use a drug clinic that costs one-third of the price of a prison medical record to get them back into society. >> go to cnn.com to read sir branson's opinion piece about ending the war on drugs.

sxwlirchlgts how nasa is protecting astronauts from radiation in space and how florians can actually cash in on invading pythons. we'll get right in. a job market being painted today. it's a picture that really is surprising a lot of folks. the labor department says that 146,000 jobs were added in november. that is almost double the 77,000 that economists were actually expecting. unemployment fell to 7.7%. that is the lowest level in nearly four years. christine romans is breaking it down. >> by now you've seen the headline, a stronger than expected jobs report for the month of november. let's look inside those numbers. you've got 40% of the unemployed have been out of work for six months or longer. that's called long-term unemployment. still something we got to work on. we need to get better next year. the underemployment rate 14.4%. those are the number of people who are out of work or are working part-time, but would like to be working full-time. people who are not fully, fully

employed in the labor market. 14.4%. sometimes that's also called the real unemployment rate. let's look at the sectors. you can see here 53,000 jobs created in retail. those are likely. some of them temporary jobs for holiday shopping season, so those are not necessarily a sign of a durable recovery. many of those are temporary jobs. i want to look over here at professional and business services. 43,000 jobs created there. the government pointing out in its report that computer systems analysts and related fields are showing strong, strong demand and strong growth. those fall right there in that business and professional services. breaking down the different worker groups, 6.8% unemployment for whites. 10% unemployment for hispanics. unemployment fell just slightly to 13.2%. you can see that structurally there are some big, big disparities between the different worker groups. here's the trend going back to the financial crisis. the recession afterwards.

these are all those millions of jobs lost then in late 2008, 2009. now this is the attempt now two years in a row of steady job creation, but you want to see more, more than 150,000 jobs created every month. you would like to see that number continue to grow. christine romans, cnn, new york. danny boston is with me now. he is an economist professor at georgia tech. he predicted this, right? everybody else thought it was dismal. you have been the ocht mist for many, many months now. why did this catch so many people off guard? >> if you look at homes, if you look at the housing sector that's coming back, and then retail sales using the holiday season were very strong. 5.8% in store fronts and 20% on-line sales. there's a lot of strength there, and economists have thought that

hurricane sandy would have an adverse affect, and it hurt some, but there's so much going on that the economy -- >> is it possible we haven't seen the full impact of hurricane sandy, that we still might see some of those jobs lost, and it just hasn't been the numbers have not caught up to it yet to the reality? >> absolutely right. we do have to wait another month to get the full picture of it, but it was interesting that we saw initial claims for unemployment compensation initially spiked up right after sandy, and then they began to go down, and so i suspect next month there will be some effect. >> how strong is this job growth? does this really get us out of the recession conditions for so long? >> interesting question. it has the potential to do that, because think of this. we've had sandy, and we have all of this debate going on over the fiscal cliff, that's driving us all crazy, right? >> yes, it is. >> and what it's also doing is that it has gotten the corporate seblgtor in a position where they're not vin investing.

they're waiting to see what's happening. nonetheless, we're still creating jobs. if you take into consideration the fact that we have those things, those neglect factors in at the same time regenerating jobs, and that means that there's a significant potential for the economy to grow. >> is it possible that this whole debate and the fiscal cliff, whether or not we go over it or not, would bakt how many people are working the next year? >> it will definitely impact, but i think what the numbers are telling us and what we've seen for the last couple of months is that the affect will not be as great as most people are predicting. you know, we kind of got this y2k kifr syndrome that's going on. it will certainly have an affect, but it also means that we can -- we're in a position to really craft a real comprehensive way to -- >> are these good jobs? what kind of jobs are these? >> they are. it's interesting. if you look at whether jobs are created, most of them are

administrative management kind of jobs, but people are being re-employed at a much lower salary than the jobs that they had when they were unemployed, and they're also coming back into part-time jobs. >> all right. it's a mixed picture. >> it is. >> i know you have always been predicting a good -- we're always happy when you are right. thank you, danny. >> okay. a labor issue that is drawing outrage in michigan. [ chanting shame on you ] protesters packing into the state capitol building yesterday after the republican-led legislature passed a series of right to work bills. now, the new measures limit workers' rights to strike and picket. employees also cannot be forced to pay union dues. poppy harlow reports from lancing, michigan. >> reporter: michigan is really considered the heart of organized labor here in america. this is the birthplace of the united autoworkers and the future of unions in this state is really in question at this

hour. two by the senate, one by the house all focussing on right to work legislation. what does that mean? well, if this state bkdz a right to work state, that means that unions and employers could not mandate that employees join a union or pay any money to that union. that would likely play out meaning less union members, less money for unions, that means less power, and that is at the core of all of this. rick snyder, a big supporter of this right to work legislation saying he will sign it if it makes it to his desk. many union workers vihamently oppose it. >> workers deserve the freedom to choose, and i think this is a good thing. >> this is absolutely not what's right for the worker. right now there are special interests that are trying to pass right to work in many different states, and michigan right now is up front right on the chopping block.

>> why the opposition and why the massive protests here at the capitol. well, it's because those labor members really believe that this would result in lower pay for them, fewer benefits, less bargaining power, and what the data shows us is that typically union workers do make higher wages than nonunion workers. when you look at median weekly salaries. one labor lawyer that i talked to said this is hugely significant saying this could be devastating to the labor movement in america as a whole. what will happen over the weekend is that opponents of this right to work legislation will be out pounding the pavement trying to get the message out and convince their representatives to break down this measure. the vote could be taken up as early as tuesday here in lansing, michigan. >> here's what we're working on also for this hour. the photographer who took a picture of a man moments before he was killed by a subway car says he used his camera's flash

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today is the answer versery of the daut that president franklin dell nor roosevelt said will live in infamy, december 7th, 1941. japanese bombers launched a surprise attack on the u.s. naval base in pearl rbor, waii. that was 71 years ago today. a few moments ago the exact minute it happened hawaii time military veterans, type of duty service members and americans paused for a moment of silence at the pearl harbor memorial and u.s.s. arizona memorial. you are actually looking at live pictures now of that ceremony that continues there. they are remembering the 2,400 men and women who lost their lives that day. u.s. military actually might be reworking plans for possible military action against syria. senior pentagon officials tell cnn that the syrian government may have escalated the civil war. i want to get more from the positiving and barbara star. first of all, tell us what is

happening inside syria that has now the pentagon and the military, the u.s. military, so concerned? >> well, you know, all weeklong we've been sawing taug about these chemical weapons. what we now know is that a u.s. official confirms to cnn that the intelligence they have in the u.s. government tells them that the syrians have been putting sarin inside aerial bomb that is can then be put on fighter aircraft, bomber aircraft and dropped on civilians. that's the big intelligence concern right now. this now has led the pentagon, as i think you would expect, to update its military opings planning so that it has options if president obama were to ask for them. and the big thing here is they now have some lobbyings they're looking at. multily sources of intelligence, they tell us, that they have that shows this activity is taking place. so it's not that president obama has necessarily made a decision to do anything. we don't know that, but what we know now is that inside the u.s.

military really stepping up the planning, stepping up looking at the opings so they know how to do this if the president asks. if it seems there was intent by syria to use these weapons on its own citizens, that would be the red line. are we closer to that today? >> you know, we've talked a lot to 13er9s about this, and what people i've spoken to are observing is that red line seems to be being pushed a little bit on both sides. originally when the president spoke about it over the summer, it was any movement or use of chemical weapons. i think there's a good reason you're seeing some of this. bashir al assad taking this move to put chemicals on bombs, waiting to see if there's a u.s. response. the u.s., the coalition, europe, the allies do not want to have

to do military action against syria. that's clear. they're hoping all the rhetoric, all the strong statements this week will convince al assad not to take this step and not to have to deal with it. >> nobody wants that to happen. another war. barbara, thank you. appreciate it. >> sure. >> the fighting rages in syria's cities. a humanitarian emergency, a crisis, is brewing all around the country's borders. we're talking about thousands of syrian people who have been pushed from their homes by this civil war that is occurring and they're now too afraid to return. u.n. secretary general ban ki moon visited this refugee camp in jordan, this is yesterday, and or own cnn's ivan watson is in a sprawling refugee camp on the border with turkey. >> reporter: we're in a camp of around 7,000 syrians on the edge of syria. these people, some of them have been waiting a month, two months to be allowed into turkey. turkey says its refugee camps are full right now. these people have been supplied tents. they get about two meals, hot

meals, a day, but everybody here complains that the water is seeping into their tents, and none of these tents really have heat either, so you can see how people are trying to heat up their tea and water, making fires right outside these shelters. now, this is just a fraction of the hoards of people who have been displaced by the conflict in syria. we don't really know the numbers of displaced people inside syria. the united nations says close to half a million have been pushed outside of the country to neighboring countries, like iraq, lebanon, turkey, jordan. the united nations secretary general ban ki moon, he is visiting camps in jordan and turkey, calling for more international assistance for these refugees, and warning also that the numbers could dramatically increase in just the next month or two if the

conflict drags on. for the people here, well, it's only december. we've been here an hour or two, and i'm freezing from the freezing rain here. it's just the beginning of december. winter is coming. ivan watson, cnn, on the syrian border. >> the man has been arrested and charged with trying to give classified information about u.s. submarines to russia. more on the seemingly cold war era story up next. anncr: some politicians seem to think medicare and... social security are just numbers in a budget.

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this is kind of like something out of a cold war spy novel. you have someone in trouble for trying to give information to the russians. want to bring in chris lawrence at the pentagon to talk about how this all unfolded. chris. >> reporter: well, basically, suzanne, he thought that he was giving this information over to russian spies when in actuality he was handing it over to undercover fbi agents who had been tracking him. what he allegedly gave them was a document that described the procedures you would use and the specific technology that you would need to do so, so the big question is how would he know

all that? he spent more than 20 years in the navy. he worked in the intelligence field. he was a submarine warfare specialist. he had not only a top secret clearance, but also authorizes for what's called special access, which limits the amount of people who can view highly sensitive material. he had that access. he hadn't been out of the navy for more than a year when fbi agents started tracking him and set up this sting and this undercover operation, and that's how they caught him. >> we know if there was any classified information that was actually released? >> reporter: no. there were never actually any real russian agents, so to speak. these were all undercover agents, b it is very, very serious. i mean, the navy will almost always tell you exactly where their carriers and surface ships are located in any given moment. they never reveal the location of the submarine. that is a highly classified part of the u.s. navy. he faces life in prison if he is convicted of this charge.

>> wow. okay. chris, thank you. appreciate it. photographer r.umar obassi happened to be at the new york subway system. that's when a 58-year-old man ended up in the track in the path of a speeding train. he says his instincts took over and he started snapping pictures hoping his flash would get the conductor's attention, but the train did not stop, and that man died. well, now another man is facing second degree murder charge accused of pushing the victim. so since then abassi has been viciously criticized for actually taking those pictures and one ended up on the cover of the new york post. he talked with our anderson cooper. >> do you feel you should have done something different or could have done something different? >> until one is in that situation, it's very hard to say, and on hindsight i would say i would had said mr. hahn, run the other direction and

looking at the image on it, there were only about three cars into the station, and all he had to do was outrun three cars, and he would have lived. >> his wife said he had been drinking. i believe some alcohol was found on him as well. it's unclear what his -- >> i'm not aware of that, and i'm not aware of his interaction with his wife. >> right. for you, what has this been like? ont only to witness an event like this is horrific, but thn to come under the criticism you have come under from people who were not there, what is that like? >> they were not there. i look at them as arm chair critics, and when you are in a situation, you realize what it is, and it was a very fluid situation. the photographs are still. you see the train, and you see mr. hahn at one spot, but in reality the train is moving towards him.

i do not know what speed it is, but it was really fast. >> have you ever seen somebody being killed before? >> no. i have never, and it's a very traumatic experience, and it's like every time if i have to -- it's reliving it. i did not sleep for close to 36, 40 hours. >> we talked about his funeral. to his family what would you say? >> as i have said earlier, that mrs. hahn, if i could have, i would have saved him. it wasn't important to get the photograph. >> today's positive jobs reports means the lowest unemployment rate that we've had in four years, but are the markets responding well? we're going to check next. ♪

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♪ ♪ you better watch out you better not cry you better not pout i'm telling you why ♪ ♪ santa claus is coming to town ♪ >> it's always such a great celebration. it was the president, his family, of course, who flipped the switch and helped lead the crowd in singing the annual tree lighting ceremony yesterday. it's the 28-foot blue spruce that replaced last year's fir, that was knocked down in a recent storm. the new tree arrived in the capital just days before hurricane sandy slammed the east coast in late october. nice ceremony. want to get a quick look at the stock market update. investors seem to be taking the jobs numbers in stride there. right now the dow up by 58 points. we heard earlier that 146,000 jobs were added in november. that is almost double the number economists were actually expecting. the man charged with killing trayvon martin is making some legal accusations of his own. george zimmerman is now suing nbc claiming the network

unfairly edited an audiotape of his 911 call to make him sound racist. zimmerman, who is hispanic, is accused of shooting martin accident an unarmed african-american teenager, back in february. well, zimmerman's law enforcement claims that nbc made it appear as if they used a racial slur while describing martin on that 911 tape. his lawyer says race has been a part in a major focus in the case when it should not whereby. here's what he said. >> this case is going to hurt racial relations in this country. no matter what the outcome. that's absurd. this could actually have been an opportunity for us to have a conversation about how we're going to treat young black males in the criminal justice system before if this was the focus that we wanted to take on it, but the divisive racism focus, horrid. >> nbc is denying all accusations in zimmerman's suit. now, the network insists there was no intent to portrait mr. zimmerman unfairly, and it says it will have iing husbandly

defend its -- well, if you are a hunter and you have deer season, turkey season, now what python season? officials in florida just announced the python challenge. the goal of the month-long contest, which starts january 12th, is to thin out the state's population of burmese pythons. the snakes have been multiplying like crazy in the everglades where they have no natural pet owners. they say pet owners caused the problems by releasing the in any caseses. $1,500 for the longest python is the prize. time now for the cnn help desk. hey there. today on the help desk we're talking about estate planning. with me this hour lynette and david. david, take a listen to this question. >> i'm the guardian of a relative, and he has special needs, and i want to make sure that when i'm gone, that my assets will be used to take care

of him. >> what advice do you have for her? >> one piece of advice is do not give the assets directly to him. what you want to do is set up what's known as a special needs trust. this trust can be used for the benefit of the special needs individual. you'll need to speak with an attorney who specializes in that and set up the trust. if you don't do it that way, what will happen is that if the individual is eligible for government benefits and the money is directly to them, they may not be able to get those benefits. it's important you set that up in the trust. the trustee can then determine the amounts that can be provided for their benefit. >> as well as just a basic estate planning move if they can't afford to set up the trust right now, at least make sure you have a will and sort of outline in your will what you want done with your assets and how you would like to care for this person. >> absolutely. guys, great advice. if you have any questions that you want our experts to tackle, upload a 30-second video with your help desk request to ireport.com.

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more than a quarter of all new h.i.v. infects ms country are among young people, ages 13 to 20 2 4. most don't even know that they are infected. 6 dr. sanjay gupta has the story. >> four years ago nick rhodes, an hiv-positive 34-year-old living in iowa met a younger man. they hit it off and had sex. >> my virus was undetectable.

i wore a condom. i did everything to protect him and miles. >> what rhodes didn't do was tell his friend about having h.i.v. when the friend found out later, he sought treatment at a local hospital. the hospital employee called the police. rhodes was arrested, charged with criminal transmission of h.i.v., and after pleading guilty on the advice of his lawyer, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison. >> i served over a year locked up. some of it in maximum security, and some of it in the solitary confinement. i still have to register as a sex offender for the rest of my life. >> reporter: scott, an attorney for land of legal is rhoades' new lawyer. he is asking the iowa supreme court to everturn his conviction. >> this case in particular was compelling. it really was a good example of the ways in which these laws are

misused by the justice system to punish people in very severe ways for things that should not even be crimes. >> about 1,000 miles away in louisiana a similar case. robert says his partner knew subtle had h.i.v. but after a messy break-up, his ex went to the police. he was charged with intentionally ebbing posing the man to the aids virus. >> i was arrested at work and i was booked. >> to avoid a possible ten-year sentence subtle entered a plea, and he spent six months in jail. under the picture on his driver's license in bold red capital letters it says sex offender. he has to carry that tag for 15 years. >> there are a lot of good people in the world that are h.i.v. positive, but that doesn't mean that they're criminals. it doesn't mean that they have malicious intent to hurt anybody. they're just trying to deal and cope with having this disease and, yet, there are these laws that make us look like we're criminals. >> at least 34 states and two

u.s. territories have laws that criminalize activities of people with h.i.v. not disclosing your status to a sexual partner that can lantd you in jail. so can spitting on someone or biting them if you have the disease. often it doesn't matter if you actually transmit the virus. in fact, the man who slept with rhoades never got h.i.v. >> jail time is not warranted in these cases. >> congresswoman barbara lee introduced legislation to get rid of these state laws. >> many offenses receive a lesser sentence than the transmission of h.i.v., and these laws, again, they're archaic and wrong and unjust and need to be looked at and taken off of the books. >> reporter: prosecutor scott burns agrees the laws need updating, but he also says repeal would be a mistake. >> any time that someone knows they have h.i.v. or aids does not disclose that to the other party, i think it's wrong. i think this should be a sanction. i just don't think you do that in america.

i think most prosecutors would agree with them. >> rhoades and subtle now work for the zero project. it's a group that fights stigma and discrimination trying to make the case that what happened to them should never happen to others. >> we cannot sit and ignore the fact that this is happening. >> i have to fight for this. i think there are a lot of other people that are fighting as well. >> dr. sanjay gupta, cnn reporting. ♪ you are my sunshine, my only sunshine ♪ ♪ you make me happy [ female announcer ] choose the same brand your mom trusted for you. children's tylenol, the #1 brand of pain and fever relief recommended by pediatricians and used by moms decade after decade. but don't just listen to me. listen to these happy progressive customers. i plugged in snapshot, and 30 days later, i was saving big on car insurance. with snapshot, i knew what i could save before i switched to progressive. the better i drive, the more i save.

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supreme court is widely expected to take on same-sex marriage early next year. in fact, ten cases related to the federal defense of marriage act, or doma and proposition 8 are pending against supreme court justices right now. at least one of them is going to make it to their docket. we could find out which one today about early next week or

so. i'm joined by our legal analyst jeffrey tubin. remind us what are the court's oping whz it comes to marriage equality, and the differences here between doma and prop 8. >> well, defense of marriage act -- defense of marriage act was signed by president clinton in 1996, and it's a law that says the federal government, all as pecks of the federal government, including the internal revenue service will not recognize same-sex marriages even many states where same-sex marriage is legal and two appeals courts have held that that is unconstitutional, that it is unlawful discrimination. the obama administration agrees that this law is unconstitutional. it's now being defended by a lawyer hired by the house of representatives, and the case about is the defense of marriage act constitutional, that is one. there are several different cases raising that issue that the justices are probably going to decide whether to hear today.

>> california's prop 8, what would that entail? >> propositional is a very different case because that's really a more fundamental case that potentially could apply in every state of the union. basically that question is does the constitution require that everyone, gay or straight, has the right to get married, and what makes the proposition 8 case potentially so earth-shaking in its politics is that it might not apply only in california. it might apply in the 40 plus states that don't have same-sex marriage. it could essentially bring same-sex marriage to the whole country. that's a very different, much broader issue than the defense of marriage act. >> and, jeffrey, explain to us, what is the difference if you are a gay couple and you get married and you have a state -- you get married in a state where it's legal versus if it was a federal -- it allowed across the country gay marriage. what is the difference there?

is your marriage recognized actually outside of that state? what kind of marriage is that? >> well, that's actually one of the open questions now that the courts have not resolved. various state courts have dealt with it. just, for example, what if a gay couple gets worked in massachusetts? they then move to virginia, which doesn't have same-sex marriage. the couple splits up. who gets custody of the children because virginia doesn't recognize same-sex marriage. those are the kinds of issues that the courts are struggling with now. if the court held that all states had to recognize all marriages, even if same-sex marriage is not legal in that state, that would be a very important step in the law, but that hasn't happened yet, and so there's a lot of confusion on those sorts of issues. >> finally, here same-sex marriage is now legal in nine states, as well as d.c. 30 states have constitutional bans. could the court simply just allow momentum to occur, to see what these other states do, how

this unfolds on the state level before they actually get involved in this issue? >> suzanne, i think that's what most people think the court will do. they will take the defense of marriage act case. they will decide that case, but when it comes to whether states have to do same-sex marriage, have to allow it, they will let the political process run its course. you know, we're seeing polls now, a recent gallop poll show 53%, highest ever, supports same-sex marriage. in the election last month four states voted in favor of same-sex marriage. 33 states in a row previously had voted against it, so the momentum is certainly with supporters of same-sex marriage, but where the court -- how the court responds to public opinion is a complicated and not always entirely predictable subject. >> when are we going to find out how the courts will get involved? >> they don't announce when they are issuing orders in an

afternoon. it could be 2:00 eastern. it could be 3:00 eastern. that is generally the range in which we should fine out, so it could be 15 minutes away. it could be an hour or so. or they could put it off for another week. they don't have to announce it in advance when they're going to issue these sorts of things. >> we're standing by. we're waiting to find out. jeff, thanks. >> me too. >> good to see you. how to keep astronauts from being exposed to too much radiation in space. our abundant natural gas is already saving us money, producing cleaner electricity, putting us to work here in america and supporting wind and solar. though all energy development comes with some risk, we're committed to safely and responsibly producing natural gas. it's not a dream. america's natural gas... putting us in control of our energy future, now. who have used androgel 1%, there's big news. presenting androgel 1.62%.

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x-rays. that is right. nasa is now working on cutting edge project to try to cut down on exposure to radiation. joining us via skype from houston, bobby swan, the manager of the project here. in laymen's terms, tell us how this works. >> okay. hi, suzanne. one of the things we're working on is called the rad works project, and we're in a project that's looking at advances in radiation protection, detection and we have three elements to us. one is the radiation environment monitor, which is being used to detect -- it is a low cost -- i mean low cost, low power, low mass device to detect particles, charged particles. then we have the advanced neutron spectrometer or ams which we're using it again, low power, low mass, to detect neutrons in the environment. and then the third is the storm

shelter. and with the storm shelter, it is where we're trying to figure out what logistics and things can we use on orbit and that's one of our options that we can create the -- the crew would have a safe haven or place to go to where they have a safer area from the effects of solar particles. >> want to bring in chad myers here, a space enthusiast. among other things, meteorologist, ask some questions as well. >> i always wanted to know, you know, we know why the earth doesn't get radiation is because of the poles, the north pole, the energy and the radiation goes around the earth. why can't we build something like that on the iss or on a spacecraft where the magneticsphere we build would send the radiation away from the men and women out there. >> you mean like a maget? >> yeah. >> like magnets to deflect? >> yeah. >> it's heavy. you have to look at the amount of mass it would take to add that kind of protection. >> when i bought first house,

built in 1961, there was a radiation shelter inside because the people that built it -- and back in 1961, radiation didn't go around 90 degree angles. you had to walk into the building, turn right, turn left, turn right, turn left and then you were inside but we know about radiation now because that really wasn't going to work. >> what is the risk of somebody who is actually up in space? is this really a very serious dose of radiation? this is just part of the job, they really have to -- they have to accept that amount of radiation? >> well, no, that's why we're looking -- what we do is we try to mitigate the risk of their exposure. so that's why we have these detection systems of which we're looking at, the technology we're developing today is so that we can -- when we do future manned missions and we're able to accommodate it with low mass, low power devices, for detection, and monitoring and then we look at ways to mitigate their exposure by developing space havens or locating areas

within the habitat module to where they can go so they can minimize their exposure. >> all right. bobby swan, we hope that these experiments are very successful. i mean, obviously it is quite dangerous with the radiation. >> and we are going to be going to mars soon, soon, a relative term, and we have to protect the astronauts for a 90-day period, 90 days in space the way we protect them now is equal to 370 years on the surface of the earth. >> we have to wrap this up. we'll continue this later, chad. we love this stuff. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] everyone deserves the gift of all day pain relief. this season, discover aleve. all day pain relief with just two pills.

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ship fedex express by december 22nd for christmas delivery. somebody commits a crime there is usually evidence to track down what happens. if a simple text message is part of the evidence, investigators are usually out of luck. brian todd reports that police now are trying to change that. >> reporter: michelle medof said she started getting harassing texts in early november. an anonymous person threatened

to send nude pictures of her to a mother, then a wide circulation. one text said, i am so close to f'ing sending them to everyone. you're so sexy. you'll be an online star in no time unless you answer me. the threats came from different cell phone numbers. medof, a model and college student, was terrified. >> i was very, very afraid. i mean, that week i didn't go to a night class because i didn't feel safe to walk by myself. >> reporter: it is those kinds of texts that u.s. law enforcement authorities want more power to investigate. several law enforcement groups including chiefs of police, sheriffs associations, are pushing congress to pass a law saying your carrier has to record and store your text messages. it is not clear how long they want them stored. scott burn of the national district attorney's association, one of the groups pushing for the new law, says his group favors a period of three or four months, maybe longer if an investigation is urgent. >> if you're in the middle of an investigation and bad guys are

communicating back and forth, whether it is a homicide, whether it is evidence of a crime, it is crucial. 20 years ago we weren't talking about this. today, everybody has a cell phone. everybody texts and e-mails and is on social media and that's where the evidence is today. >> reporter: or not. as of 2010, major carriers like at&t, sprint and t-mobile didn't retain any content of customers' text messages. they got rid of them immediately. verizon keeps them only for up to five days. why can't law enforcement get the texts from individual cell phones? scott burns says it is faster and more efficient to get it from the carriers and points out, of course, the bad guys often erase their incriminating texts. but many believe the law enforcement benefit of mining texts doesn't outweigh privacy concerns. chris calabrese says with some 60 billion text messages sent every day there is too much private information that would be stored.

>> and that's not just something law enforcement can get it divorce attorneys, it is other investigators, it is the press. even if you feel like you have nothing to hide, a lot of embarrassing and personal information there. >> reporter: experts point out this does become a security issue with the carriers. if they store your texts for any length of time, they're not invulnerable to be being hacked into. we contacted the major wireless carriers to see what they think. reached out to verizon, sprint, at&t and t-mobile. none of them would comment. the wireless association, the main lobbying arm for those carri carriers, also wouldn't comment. brian todd, cnn, washington. new york has as much as $1 million wasted as the city recovers from superstorm sandy. the wall street journal now is reporting that scores of hotel rooms paid for with public money have been vacant for weeks. they're supposed to house residents displaced by the superstorm, but those rooms are unoccupied. more than 1,000 people are l